Financial results are the leadership metric that gets the most attention, but here’s what the ‘total package’ of leadership results looks like. ‘What a great job he’s done!’ ‘She must be one of the best CEOs in the industry!’ “We’re lucky he agreed to come on board when he did!” You’ve heard remarks like that before and maybe uttered the same a few times yourself, but what inspires us to say such things? It could be because a highly skilled leader took the helm and set an enterprise back on course, it could be because an executive led a business to new heights and of course, it could be that an individual transformed a great idea into a thriving fast-track startup.
Do they all have leadership attributes in common? You bet! Money is the most attention-getting measure of their leadership, you know, metrics like profits/profitability, growth, share price, shareholder equity and more. All are important, some critical; dollars are the first way to keep ‘score.’ But, because of the influence they have on the sustainability of an enterprise, other leadership results deserve equal weight. Some are penned more often than others; here are but a few of those results that I admire most.
I’ve been inside well over one hundred enterprises. Most all were focused on the metrics but also pursed the ‘total package’ leadership results listed above. From both my observation and my personal experience, doing so is not always easy, but doing so almost inevitably improves the ‘score!’ Adverse economic conditions, predatory competitors and changing market dynamics can all distract, and when they do, is it worth it to stay the course? Customers, employees and shareholders would likely agree…an ecumenical approach to leadership has its own rewards.
Lesson learned.
By Fred Engelfried
Source: Chief Executive
The author surveyed 5,600 workers from various industries from January 2019 to December 2021, finding that worker dissatisfaction not only starts as early as age 25 — it’s been here since before the pandemic started. Her advice: aim for work-life alignment, not work-life balance. Find out what drives them as an individual — and reshape their jobs together. Engage them in the recruiting process.
There’s been a lot of buzz about a 4-day workweek. But it will be the ‘4 + 1’ workweek that ultimately wins out: 4 days of “work” and 1 day of “learning.” Several forces are converging in a way that point toward the inevitability of this workplace future.
How can leaders help their teams combat change exhaustion — or step out of its clutches? Too often, organizations simply encourage their employees to be resilient, placing the burden of finding ways to feel better solely on individuals. Leaders need to recognize that change exhaustion is not an individual issue, but a collective one that needs to be addressed at the team or organization level.
